Lose to Gain
by Purple Pearls Turned Black
Summary: [AU] Natsume's love for Mikan was unintended and has no bounds; he just wants to see her happy. However, she is anything but happy when the guy she's in love with has a girlfriend. So, to bring back her smiles, Natsume finds a way to ease her broken heart, but at the cost of his own...
1. Chapter One - Past (9 years ago)

HELLOOOOOOOO FRIENDS!

Before we get to the story I'd like to mention 5 things:

1\. It's my 21st birthday today! At least it is still my birthday in the UK (it's 10:30pm, I was busy during the day. Obvs, it's my 21st) Yes, I am now a complete adult and every British law currently applies to me. To make this day even more special, I decided to put this story up.

2\. This is my first story! Ikr? I can't believe it myself. I joined this site when I was 17, and now I'm 21. At that time GA was still an on going manga. But now it's over. *Sigh* How time flies.

3\. I've written the summary for this story when I first made an account but I wrote the chapter a year later because of constant exams and assignments. I hadn't put it up because I didn't think I could make the commitment. But now I work! School is over! Childhood is over! And my boring life begins! Hooray...

4\. This chapter is fairly boring, so sorry about that. Also, it's my first time writing a story since I was 10, and I've noticed my writing is very awkward and stiff, and hugely lacks fluidity (among other things). So again, my apologies. I'm hoping to improve as I write :)

5\. Finally, I don't own GA or it's characters (I don't know why I have to put this up (since this is a fan fic and it's obvious I don't own anything but my plot) but everyone else does so I just follow like sheep, no questions asked XD)

* * *

 **Chapter One**

 **Past – 9 Years Ago**

"Natsume!" someone called from behind him.

Taking his attention off the flyer on the wall, Natsume looked over his shoulder and saw Ruka crossing the road to meet him. Natsume nodded in acknowledgement and turned his head back to glance once more at the flyer, before continuing on his walk towards home.

Ruka turned to look at the flyer, curious to see what Natsume was so focused on that he didn't hear him call out his name the first two times.

"Hiring babysitter?" He read aloud. Does Natsume need more money? Ruka frowned and looked back at Natsume's retreating back. And just when he thought things were getting better.

Sighing, he quickly ripped the flyer off the wall, stuffing it in the front pocket of his jeans, before running to catch up with his best friend walking towards their neighbourhood. Once he caught up he was about to question him about the flyer when he noticed Natsume carrying a few grocery bags.

"Are you going to the hospital to see Aunt Kaoru? Is that why you finished your shift early today?" Natsume would never finish his shift, at the convenience store, early for any other reason. So, the food in the bag must be for his mother who was currently being hospitalised. Kaoru hated hospital food and comically always complained about it when Ruka accompanied Natsume on some of his visits.

"Hn, I'm picking up Aoi from my neighbour's house to take her with me. She was whining about how much she wanted to see her."

Ruka chuckled. "Seems like her. Want me to come?"

"No. She'll just bug you about my imaginary girlfriend." He scoffed, rolling his eyes at remembering his mother's antics.

Kaoru Hyuuga was always a handful, sick or not, she never changed. Constantly thinking about her children's happiness and welfare even after the divorce. That meant being both a full time mother and worker, while never compromising the two for fear of them growing up badly if she deprived them of the life they deserved. Why she would ever think that? Natsume would never know.

He'll never admit it out loud but Kaoru is the best mother Natsume could ever have asked for. And seeing her work so hard to provide for them has always made him feel guilty and useless. Especially, now that she's suffering from the consequences for doing so. Consequences she always disregarded, much to Natsume's annoyance.

"Tch. So annoying." He grunted.

Ruka smiled. Being Natsume's best friend since Kindergarten, no one in their school but Ruka knew how much he cared for his family, though he refused to ever show it.

After his parents' divorce, he changed. He promised to provide for his family, if only to lessen the burden Kaoru bears.

Now at age fourteen and his mother's visits to the hospital becoming more frequent, Natsume has taken his self-proclaimed responsibility seriously and ended up taking up a part-time job at the local convenience store. Definitely something he's argued about countless of times with his mother and more recently, with Ruka as well. But seeing how Natsume was at the top of the school in academics and sports, there wasn't a lot they could say to reason with him.

Which reminded him, "Natsume?"

"Hn."

"Are you going to take that babysitting job?" Natsume's eyes widened slightly at his question.

Did he see that? Damn! He should have known Ruka couldn't be fooled; he would have taken the flyer otherwise. But, he knew all too well that if he decided to take the job, it would have elicited another troublesome dispute with Ruka, one which he obviously failed to avoid. He sighed in defeat, waiting for the lecture that was sure to come.

"Look, I know you want to earn more money to help Aunt Kaoru, but seriously Natsume, she didn't work herself to the bone just so you would end up working to pay her hospital bills."

Glancing at Natsume, he continued "If you take this babysitting job, you'll be giving up your friends, your sister, your-"

"I'm not giving up Aoi or my friends." Natsume forcefully denied.

"Yes you are. You'll have no more time for us because you'll be working constantly. Hell, you don't even have much time for us _now._ "

Natsume kept silent. He knew it was true. Even now, working evening shifts straight after school on weekdays, and long shifts on weekends, he didn't have time to hang out with friends or play with his sister much. As he and Ruka don't share any classes at school, they only saw each other during breaks on days where Ruka didn't have Basketball practice, which was only two days out of the five. And regarding his sister, he could only help her with her homework in the morning of his weekend shifts. To say he wouldn't win the Best-Friend or the Best-Brother-of-the-Year-award would be more than an assumption and a pretty safe bet.

It's not like he wanted to spend all his time working. Despite how he acts, his mother and sister are the most important women in his life. The fear of knowing he might lose one of them sooner rather than later was gnawing at him in the middle of the night. Causing him to suffer small bouts of insomnia every now and then. Which is why he constantly slept in class, much to his mother's chagrin. To Natsume, it was completely worth using up his time to help her, even if it made him feel like shit having to neglect everybody he cares about. And nothing Ruka will say will change his mind.

Looking ahead, Ruka noticed they were nearing their destination and so he quickly prodded on, "Come on Natsume, we just started high school, this isn't how you should be living your life. You need to listen to your mum on this; she worked hard to give you and Aoi a happy, trouble-free life. Don't throw that away for a measly below-minimum wage job. Everyone can see how much all the working and worrying you've been doing has taken a toll on you. Maybe you really should think about getting a girlfriend."

Natsume scoffed "Yeah, not gonna happen Ruka."

Chuckling, Ruka conceded "Fine, no girlfriend. Then what about some help?"

Seeing Natsume raise his eyebrows in question, he explained.

"I know whatever I say won't change your mind." Natsume smiled at his spot on observation. "So, I've decided to work at the store with you. Actually, I just came back from an interview with the boss and I got the job. I'm starting on Saturday."

"So that's why you were coming from the same direction as me. I didn't see you at the store though." Natsume stated.

"Yeah, you were busy stacking shelves at the back and I didn't want to interrupt."

"Tch, like I give a damn. You don't need to worry about that or give up your time for me, stupid." He shook his head at his best friend's ridiculous decision, but secretly, he was glad to finally have some company at work for once.

Though Natsume wasn't against his idea right now, he will be at his next words, "Actually I only decided to take the job so I can help you earn money."

"What?" Narrowing his eyes in realisation, Natsume questioned "Are you saying what I think you're saying? Ruka that's cra-"

Ruka cut him off, continuing in a rush, "Hear me out. I'll give my earnings to you so you can quit working after school and just continue working weekends with me. That way you can spend time with your family and friends, while still earning the same amount of money as you would if you still worked on weekdays. It's a win-win situation. We get to hang out more and you'd get a break and still earn enough to help Aunt Kaoru." He finished off eagerly.

Natsume could feel his excitement, and it would help him a lot, he knew. But he would never let Ruka do that for him. It was asking too much.

"No." Natsume stated coldly.

They were finally at his neighbour's house and walking to their front door, meaning this conversation was about to end, and he couldn't have been gladder.

"Please Natsume. Be rational, this would seriously help you out. I know you're thinking that it would be my hard-earned money and that it doesn't belong to you, but I don't need it. I already get a lot of pocket money from my mum and you know it. Look at it this way; you're always working to earn money so I rarely see you. If I work with and for you, you earn a lot and I get to see you often. It's that simple and a really good idea. Don't try to deny it."

They stopped at the door.

He took Natsume's silence as contemplation and could see he was on the verge of convincing him so he pushed on, "Imagine all the hilarious things we could do, like give the out-of-date food to Koko."

Natsume smirked; he would like to see Koko's reaction to that for sure, mainly because Koko constantly asks him for free food from the store every day. There were definitely a lot of perks to this, but still a few issues needed to be addressed.

"What about studying? You need good grades to get into Vet School Ruka."

"I'll study the whole week after school, no problem." He answered breezily.

"What about helping your mum at the Boutique?"

"Please, Natsume, you know as much as I do that I hate working there, especially for free. I've wanted a good excuse to stop having to go there for years now, and finally I do. So it makes this idea even better. And besides, mum will be happy that I'll be helping you. She's worried about you too Natsume."

Natsume sighed. He hated when people were worried for him, it made him feel worse. Still hoping Ruka would take back his crazy idea, he tried asking one last time, "Are you sure? It's asking a lot."

"I'm more than sure. It's only two days, not long at all. And if you still needed more money, you could take the babysitting job, since its part time and pays a higher hourly rate than the convenience store."

Natsume reluctantly relented, "Fine. But, if you want to quit, tell me, I wouldn't mind."

Ruka nodded his head eagerly before the door in front of them was abruptly pulled open by a tall, raven-haired, young man.

* * *

See you next week IA!

Pearl

11/05/2016 (I was tempted to write 1995 instead of 2016, force of habit when writing your DOB XD)


	2. Chapter Two - Past (9 years ago)

Hello! Before you start reading I need to mention some things:

1\. Sorry for the late update. I kind of overestimated my ability to juggle my busy (but stable) work life and writing this story. I'd like to at least update every fortnight but I'm not sure if I can promise you that atm. But I'll definitely update at least every month.

2\. Ice lolly is the British word for Popsicle. Initially I did write Popsicle but subconsciously I'd also wrote ice lolly too. So I had both words written, which made me realise that it may confuse some of you. In the end, I changed all of them to ice lolly since it was easier for me. (If you don't understand what I'm talking about just ignore this XD)

3\. Also, as you're reading you may notice that I've described Youichi to have brown hair, like he does in the manga. I know that's against what most other writers of GA fanfic have done, but I prefer him with light brown hair. Idk why, but I just do XD

4\. This chapter was a little more than 6 1/2 pages on word, whereas the last one was 4 pages. So it is a bit longer. Unfortunately, it's also another boring chapter and Mikan's not in it. Yep, I know. I'm sad too. But I hoped it would give you all a little more insight on Natsume's life.

5\. Finally I don't own GA and it's characters. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter Two**

 **Past – 9 Years Ago (continued)**

"Why are you guys just standing here? There is a doorbell Natsume. People use it so the residents of the household know there's someone at the door that wants to see them." His neighbour's eldest son teased.

Natsume scowled. "No one would want to see you and your stupid face, moron. Where's Aoi?" He demanded.

"You're as harsh as ever I see." He looked to Ruka and nodded in greeting, "Hey Ruka. How come you're here too? Did you two hang out today or something?"

Shrugging, Ruka answered, "Yeah, I guess." He turned towards Natsume "I'll see you at school tomorrow. Say hi to Aoi and Youichi for me. I would come see them but I have to help mum at the Boutique today." With that, he gave a small wave and Natsume nodded back at him as Ruka walked away.

"So that's why you're here early!" exclaimed his neighbour. "Skiving off work to hang out, huh Natsume?" he grinned, slapping Natsume on the shoulder in congratulations.

Natsume shoved his arm off his shoulder and growled, "I'm not a loser and a waste of space like you, Baldy."

"Woah, no need to get grouchy." He said, holding his hands up. "And my name isn't baldy you brat, it's Andou Tsubasa. Actually, you should be calling me Senpai because I'm one year older than you. So show some respect Natsume."

Snorting in disgust, Natsume roughly pushed Tsubasa aside and strode into the house, towards the garden where Aoi usually plays with Youichi. He didn't want to have more to do with that moron, and the sooner he finds Aoi, the sooner he could leave his presence before he catches his contagious, brain-cell-killing germs.

His hatred for Tsubasa wasn't a recent occurrence. It started nine years ago when Natsume was five and had moved into the neighbourhood with his pregnant mother, after his parents' separation. Tsubasa and his family came to welcome them and the first thing he said was 'Where's your dad?'

To make matters worse, he had the nerve to say it around his mother. Natsume could see the tightness around her eyes when she faked a smile and truthfully answered back in kind words that Tsubasa definitely didn't deserve. She had disapproved and unjustly scolded him when he voiced out his 'opinions' of Tsubasa after they'd left. Since then, he despised him more and more over the years because of the stupid and ignorant words that come out of his mouth.

Youichi, on the other hand, was a pleasant surprise for Natsume. When he first met Tsubasa and his parents, he was told that they couldn't have any more children. So, he wasn't too shocked to hear that Mr and Mrs Andou adopted a child a year later. What was a surprise, however, was how much Youichi became attached to Natsume when he'd babysit him and Aoi. Copying his mannerisms and attitude to the point where he's been mistaken to be Natsume's younger brother, rather than Tsubasa's.

"Onii-chan!"

Just as Natsume stepped out into the garden he saw his sister sitting on the ground at the far end of the garden, waving wildly at him with muddied arms.

Tsubasa answered his silent question from behind, "She's been making mud pies with Youichi since she got here."

Ignoring him, Natsume walked towards them, where suddenly Aoi jumped up to hug him in all her muddy glory.

"You're getting me dirty Buriko." Natsume chuckled as he hugged her back.

"Stop calling me Buriko!" She whined but happily squeezed him tighter.

Before he could retort a voice behind her cut in. "Oi stupid. You're going to hurt Nii-san if you squeeze him any tighter."

He looked up and saw the light brown hair and silvery-blue eyes of Youichi.

She stuck her tongue out at him, "You're just jealous that _my_ brother is hugging _me_ , and not _you_."

Youichi crossed his arms, turned his head away and huffed. He wanted to hug Natsume-nii too. But, he knew it's not cool and he couldn't look uncool towards Nii-san.

"I'm not jealous." he muttered.

Natsume gave out a small smile and held out one of his arms for him. Without hesitation, Youichi walked into his embrace and squeezed him just as hard as Aoi had. Natsume-nii always knew how he felt without him having to say anything, unlike Tsubasa.

Releasing his hold on both of them, Natsume knelt down and rummaged through the grocery bag he's been holding and pulled out an ice lolly.

"Hey, I got some ice lollies from the grocery store for you." He said handing the lolly to Youichi.

Delighted, Youichi eagerly took the icy lolly and readily tore through the wrapper before sucking on the icy treat. It tasted heavenly in this ridiculously hot weather. Even though it was only late April, the sun was out in full force today, a stark contrast from the rain that poured yesterday.

"Where's mine?" Aoi exclaimed.

"I'm taking you with me to go to see mum at the hospital today. You know what she'd say if you had ice lollies before dinner." Natsume explained.

Aoi's eyes lighted up, "We're seeing Mummy today?"

"Yeah. But first you need to change out of those dirty clothes Buriko."

She ignored his embarrassing nickname for her and bounced on her feet from the excitement of knowing she'll finally see her mother. "Okay! Let's go now!"

Quickly saying her goodbyes to Youichi, she sped off into the house like a bullet.

Natsume shook his head in amusement and turned to Youichi, ruffling his hair.

"I'll see you later You. Come over at ours anytime."

Nodding his head, he followed Natsume into the house heading for the front door where Tsubasa was waiting.

"Aoi said something about seeing her mum while she dashed out. Is that true? Are you going to see Aunt Kaoru?"

"Hn."

"Ah, so weren't skipping work. You should've just said so. There was no need to get aggressive earlier."

"Like I care what you think. I'm not gonna waste my breath trying to explain to an idiot like you." Natsume scowled.

This kid! Is he trying to piss him off?

Tsubasa clenched his teeth in anger, "I may not be as smart as you but I'm not dumb Natsume." He said, barely refraining himself from swearing, keeping in mind that Youichi was right there.

Natsume snorted, "Keep telling yourself that." He smiled slightly at Youichi, ruffling his hair one last time and walked out of his neighbour's house before Tsubasa could reply.

While walking the few steps towards his house, he noticed the door was left ajar.

Aoi.

Idiot! Doesn't she know anyone can just come in if the door is left wide open?

Stepping inside and closing the door behind him, he shouted, "Aoi!"

Seconds later, his sister appeared at the bottom of the stairs wearing a fresh change of clothes and body washed clean of mud. She stared at him, wide-eyed and innocent, "What's wrong?"

"You leaving the door open is what's wrong. You should know better than that Aoi." He scolded.

"But I knew you were going to come in. It was only for a few minutes!"

"Those few minutes are all it would take for a kidnapper to waltz right in and take you." He said frustratingly. Why couldn't she understand the danger she could've put herself in?

Aoi pouted and crossed her arms childishly. "Nothing happened and you're here now, so there's no need to be worried. I'm fine Onii-chan."

Sighing, Natsume relented, realising that he might be overreacting a bit. He just couldn't bear the thought of losing Aoi. Especially because something in his gut painfully told him he won't much time left with his mother.

"Fine. I'll let this go if you promise not to leave the front door open when you're alone in the house next time. Nothing happened this time but you don't know it won't happen in the future."

Aoi broke into a wide smile and nodded her head readily, happy to end this conversation. "Then, can we go now?"

Natsume smiled, "Yeah, let me just put these ice lollies in freezer before they melt." He said before going to the kitchen to store them away.

Once he came back out, his sister grabbed his hand and dragged him towards the front door impatiently.

"Come on Onii-chan. Let's go already!"

Chuckling, Natsume let Aoi pull him towards the bus stop.

* * *

"Natsume?" Kaoru said in a serious tone after their initial hugs and greetings. "Where's your girlfriend? Didn't I say to bring her with you the next time you come visit me?"

"Not this again. Mum, I don't have a girlfriend. How many times do I have to tell you that?" He said in exasperation.

"Don't lie to me. I know kids your age these days. They go around having different girlfriends every month. Especially when they're as handsome as you are."

Natsume groaned. There was just no getting through to this woman. No matter how many times he denied it, she still insisted he was lying and was just too embarrassed to introduce her.

Aoi giggled, "Mummy, Onii-chan doesn't have a girlfriend." She said, coming to his rescue. "I think he might be gay because he constantly complains about girls his age being stupid."

Ok, maybe not. She just made it worse.

Kaoru whipped her head to face him "Is that true?"

"What? No. Of course not." Said Natsume through clenched teeth. He glared at Aoi for planting the seed of this ridiculous assumption in their mother's mind. He had no doubt Kaoru will never let this go.

Kaoru's eyes widened as she gasped in sudden realisation, "It's Ruka isn't it? I should've known!"

Yep. She'd never let it go. There was no point in trying to convince her otherwise. It will just go through one ear, and out the other. He sighed in resignation.

Ignoring his giggling sister and the mutterings of his mother, Natsume began walking out of the hospital room.

"Where are you going Natsume? We need to discuss your plan of action in wooing Ruka."

He clenched his fist. "I'm getting a cup of coffee. And I'm not gay Mum."

"There's nothing to be ashamed of sweetie!" She called out as he left the room. "I'm sure Ruka will accept your feelings!" But Natsume was long gone before she could finish.

As Natsume made his way towards the coffee vending machine, he contemplated why his mother was so adamant about him being in a relationship.

He inserted the money and selected the buttons needed to purchase strong, black coffee and went back to his musings as he waited for his Styrofoam cup to be filled.

Was she hinting something? He knows she and Aoi were just teasing about him being gay but surely there's a reason she keeps bugging him about it? Maybe she wanted someone to tell her what he got up to during school hours? Natsume was a very private guy and didn't like sharing his school life with his mother. Mostly because he thought there wasn't much to tell and he didn't want to bore her with the details. He literally just went to school, slept, hung out with Ruka and slept some more before going to his part time job.

Honestly. That was all there was to it. He's sure she knows this too, so why? Her physical condition has been getting worse lately, so was it possibly because…?

No. Shaking his head in an attempt to rid himself of such negative thoughts, he picked up his cup and made the journey back to his mother's room. Upon opening the door a crack, he overheard what seemed to be the tail end of a conversation between his mother and sister.

"No way! Onii-chan's always too busy working to even think about romance. He doesn't even have time for me." Aoi pouted.

Natsume was immediately washed with guilt. He didn't know his absence affected her so greatly.

He thought back to the conversation he had with Ruka. He was so reluctant about it before, but now, quitting work on weekdays suddenly seemed like the best idea. He'd have to thank Ruka properly tomorrow.

He entered the room, making sure to seem unaffected. "Are you guys still on this subject? Just let it go already." He said, rolling his eyes in annoyance.

Aoi whirled around on her feet "Onii-chan!"

"Natsume! How long have you been standing there?" Said his mother, recovering from the shock of his sudden reappearance.

He scowled "Long enough to know that you two must have no life that you feel the need to meddle with mine."

Kaoru's face softened, "I'm just worried about you Natsume. You're not happy. I can see it on your face. If you would at least quit your job, then…"

"Then what? You'll go back to working yourself to the bone, only to end up back here again?" He said angrily, gesturing to the hospital room.

Kaoru was born with a weak heart. It wasn't an issue as she never overexerted herself and was able to live a relatively normal life. Everything changed though when their father decided to leave them and filed for a divorce. Kaoru was left pregnant and independently shouldered the responsibility of bringing up two children without receiving any financial help. Thus, she started working long hours, and coupled with being a mother, this began her first fainting episode. She ridiculously dismissed it being due to 'high stress levels'. Little did they know the worst was yet to come when she one day suffered through severe angina. Since then, she would go in and out of hospital and the bills for treatment would pile up.

"Mum. This is a stupid cycle. You work harder because you have medical fees to pay for, but that only makes you sicker and have to pay _more_ in the end _._ You need to stop this. It doesn't help us either if we lose you."

She smiled painfully. "I'm a huge burden on you aren't I? I guess you're right but it hurts to see my own son working to pay off my debt. I'm so sorry Natsume that I'm such a failure." She looked at Aoi as her eyes started to water, "I'm sorry to both of you."

Aoi shook her head and sniffed, "No Mummy. You're the best mummy in the world."

"You sacrificed so much for us. Let me do the same for you now." Natsume said softly.

"You're so strong Natsume. And young. Too young to live with this responsibility. I'm an old lady now. It would be a waste to sacrifice your time and youth for me."

"My childhood's over, so there's no 'youth' to sacrifice."

"You're still young Natsume. You've just started your last year in Junior High School and haven't spent time with your friends _and_ you have yet to experience young love."

"It's not an issue" he muttered, mentally disgusted at the idea of dating any of the girls in his class.

Kaoru sighed, knowing too well that his son was very much the introvert. "What do I have to do to at least get you to stop working every day?"

"Not much actually."

She raised an eyebrow in question.

"I've decided to only work weekends now. I'm gonna talk to the manager tomorrow about it."

"Really Onii-chan?" Aoi said excitedly.

He gave a small smile, "Hn."

His mother beamed, "I'm so glad to hear that! My son's finally listening to me. Once I get out I'll plan a family outing for tomorrow. No, wait. That's too soon. Maybe the day after? No? How about Wednesday? Yes! Wednesday sounds good. Aoi, sweetie where do you-"

Natsume ignored her animated rambling. He was still working this week and was prepared to burst her bubble to tell her just that when his mother suddenly gasped in pain and the heart rate monitor started beeping loudly.

Kaoru clutched her chest and rapidly turned pale. The agony shown plainly on her beautiful face, her mouth was wide open expressing her silent, anguished screams.

The nurses and doctor flooded the room.

And all Natsume could do was stare frozen in shock as his world stopped, his breath stopped and he came to the frightening realisation that he might forever lose his beloved mother.

* * *

The scene where Natsume scolds Aoi for leaving the front door open actually relates to me. My older brother went ballistic when I did the same thing once maaaany years ago. I imagine Natsume to be a loving and protective older brother like mine.

I've checked my inbox for the first time since I uploaded this story, and I wanted to thank and apologise to those of you who gave me amazingly kind PMs, to which I haven't even replied to (yet). I forgot the chance of me receiving any, so it didn't occur to me to check. I promise to do so from now on.

I've also been waiting to say THANK YOU for all your birthday wishes and THANK YOU to all of you who have read, reviewed, followed and favourited. Seriously you cannot imagine my surprise at seeing 7 reviews, 9 follows and 3 favourites! And it was a boring chapter! Mind blown!

 **Lexi1989:** You're on the right track, I'm so glad you noticed the foreshadowing. There's some more of that in this chapter :D

 **Anilissa:** I'm glad you're starting to like it! They'll meet in the next chapter...hopefully...unless my brain and fingers decide otherwise...

 **N. Risa:** Wow! That's a huge compliment. I'll make sure to look at your favourites, thanks!

 **bad.a**.chick404:** Thank you! I'm so sorry I didn't update sooner. But I think I'll get the hang of juggling my life and writing this story soon enough (lets hope) :)

 **Guest:** Hopefully you'll be happy with however it turns out. One thing I can promise is that Natsume and Mikan WILL end up together! Because I'm a sucker for happy endings. (Let's be honest, we need more happy endings. If not in real life than at least in a fictional world :D)

 **CC:** Thanks. Though I'm not sure what you meant after 'great story'. It will be great if you could clarify. But I have a feeling you meant you'd hate to see me drop the story or not update? If that's what you were referring to, then don't worry, I have no intention of doing that. Trust me ;) Thank you for your review, it means a lot!

 **newroz:** Weekly updates was the plan initially. Clearly though, I'm unable to do that because multi-tasking and I don't get along very well :D

See you soon!

Pearl

15/06/2016

PS. Who else is loving Tiffany's (from SNSD) 'I just wanna dance' single?


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